Constitution Day Ideas
Constitution Day Ideas
All federally funded educational institutions celebrate Constitution Day on or around September 17 of each year. We have compiled resources to help you celebrate Constitution Day by going beyond repeating the same thing you did last year. Our resources come from a collaboration with Pi Sigma Alpha to ask chapters how they contribute to Constitution Day programming, a review of Constitution Day websites at hundreds of colleges and universities, and conversations with faculty.
Have more ideas to add? Contact our Director of Professional Development.
This panel featured Daniella Mascarenhas (Xavier University of Louisiana) and Tom Pope (Lee University). The focus was on discussing the panelists’ innovative Constitution Day programs and what has made those programs so successful at their institutions and in their communities.
Major Take-Aways, by William O’Brochta, Director of Professional Development...
1. Go Beyond the Ordinary: Consider Constitution Day programs that can be signature events. Draw on the talents of the organizers and the interests of students and community members to develop programs that achieve meaningful and specific goals. At the same time, think big: our panelists described events with hundreds of attendees, high profile guests, and community member (and high school student) engagement and participation.
2. Seek Help and Support: National organizations and institutions themselves are interested in Constitution Day programming not only because it is a federal mandate. Constitution Day programming is part of broader initiatives to develop and promote civic learning and engagement. Be a creative partner with other offices and departments on campus, and consider how student clubs, organizations, and external funders may help to support or to be engaged with your work.
3. Establish Broad Goals: Constitution Day programming can have a purpose beyond educating students and community members about the Constitution. Consider how innovative programming can invite others to campus, create connections across departments, help with recruitment or retention, provide a signature event for political science, and itself demonstrate civic engagement.
This panel featured Daniella Mascarenhas (Xavier University of Louisiana) and Tom Pope (Lee University). The focus was on discussing the role that Constitution Day can play in broader civic engagement work throughout the academic year.
Major Take-Aways, by William O’Brochta, Director of Professional Development...
1. Lean Into Timing: Constitution Day occurs early in the academic year (before it starts at some institutions!). Timing is often seen as a challenge but turn it into an opportunity. Use the spring and summer to build student and community momentum for fall programming. Set up Constitution Day as the successful start to an academic year of events and activities. Build momentum year-over-year by including participants from previous years again, perhaps in different roles.
2. Get Credit for Your Work: Many people plan Constitution Day events that range dramatically in size and scope. Clearly articulate what you do for Constitution Day to help others understand its significance, especially if you go far beyond what is required by federal law. Like other civic engagement activities, integrate Constitution Day into all aspects of tenure and promotion review including teaching, research, and service. Engage in meaningful self-promotion and promotion of the institution, as Constitution Day activities are frequently popular for community members.
3. Have a Clear Vision: Constitution Day programming has a different tone and purpose than get-out-the-vote efforts. While the two do support and fit into each other in many ways, distinguish the two and make meaningful opportunities and hold worthwhile programs that align with the goals and objectives of each type of event.
The responsibility for running Constitution Day programming often depends on the type of programming that the institution wants and the capacity that the organizer has. Below are common examples of different organizations responsible for Constitution Day programming and the kinds of programming that they often generate:
Financial aid office: Maintain a webpage about Constitution Day.
Provost or other administrator: Send an e-mail about Constitution Day.
Student affairs: Distribute pocket Constitutions.
Library: Produce a poster or display about the Constitution.
Academic department: Host a speaker or panel discussion.
Pi Sigma Alpha or another student organization: Organize games or interactive activities.
Multiple organizations: Have a weeklong celebration.
Presumably, the reason you are here reading this material is that you have been assigned or volunteered to lead or to participate in Constitution Day programming. If that is you, ask yourself several questions:
What are the goals of Constitution Day programming at your institution?
How has Constitution Day been celebrated in the past? What has been successful?
What other entities on campus have been or are responsible for Constitution Day programming along with you?
How does Constitution Day programming fit within broader civic and political engagement activities and events at your institution?
How did you come to be responsible for Constitution Day programming?
What resources are readily available to you for the celebration?
How is the work you do for Constitution Day recognized?
Many faculty are assigned to lead Constitution Day programming at an institution where there are no established goals for a Constitution Day celebration, no resources for such a celebration, and little recognition for leading programming. In this case, you may wish to start with a simple celebration. Simple celebrations are often conducted by the different entities listed above, so it is imperative that you check with these entities to see if they are doing something to celebrate Constitution Day. If they are, then you should clarify what, if anything, additional is expected of you. Simple celebrations fulfill the federal mandate.
If you are responsible for Constitution Day programming and other entities are not making plans to celebrate, consider choosing a simple celebration strategy that is replicable each year. Do not count other entities on campus out as partners just because they currently are not engaged with Constitution Day. In fact, simple Constitution Day celebrations may align more closely with the goals of these groups. Consider the typical simple celebration ideas from above:
Maintain a webpage about Constitution Day: Regardless of where the webpage is hosted on your institution’s website, you can suggest or provide content that is relevant and engaging for students.
Send an e-mail about Constitution Day: Similar to the webpage, you can coordinate with administrators to send this e-mail, or an administrator can send the e-mail. Changing the e-mail text is easier than changing the text on a webpage.
Distribute pocket Constitutions: Several organizations provide free or low-cost pocket Constitutions to educators.
Produce a poster or display about the Constitution: Institutional archives may have material or content for a Constitution display. Student affairs may have materials that you can use to make the display. In all cases, develop a display that can be re-used or added onto for subsequent celebrations.
Regardless of whether you can engage partners in simple Constitution Day celebrations, you can organize these celebrations without expending substantial resources.
“September 17th is Constitution Day, a federal holiday that commemorates the signing of the U.S. Constitution. The United States’s most important civic document was signed by our founders on September 17, 1787. Constitution Day celebrates our Constitution and the rights of citizenship it provides and protects. By federal law, colleges and universities are required to recognize Constitution Day by providing information about the Constitution and its history. In an increasingly polarized, partisan political environment in which the Constitution is used to justify or oppose any number of opinions, understanding what is in the document and the ways in which it has been interpreted is more important than ever.
If it has been a while since you have reviewed our Constitution, I encourage you to take a few minutes to remind yourself of what it says. The National Constitution Center also has a significant amount of additional information about the U.S. Constitution posted on its website. You can also review a number of historical documents related to the country’s founding, including the Articles of Confederation and the Bill of Rights, which originally proposed 12 amendments to the Constitution.
If you’d rather listen to the Amendments than read about them, New York Public Radio has created a playlist to represent the 27 Amendments to the Constitution that are currently a part of the Constitution. The website also includes summaries of each amendment, links to the music, and transcripts of the lyrics.
You can even find out whether your knowledge of the Constitution and our nation’s history is sufficient pass a practice U.S. citizenship test and test your vulnerability to misinformation while also participating in a Cambridge University research study.
Constitution Day is also an excellent day to register to vote. See voter registration information for your state.”
Many institutions organize speakers or panel discussions for Constitution Day, and faculty are often responsible for these events. Determine or establish the purpose and goals of a speaker event or a panel discussion prior to starting planning.
Consider some of these questions:
Are you relying on the same faculty and same topics for Constitution Day speakers? Are there ways to more evenly distribute speaker opportunities and to devise creative topics?
How are speakers compensated for their time and preparation work?
How can you ensure that the event will have a sizeable audience? Can the speaker integrate within existing speaker series, departmental events, or classes?
Why would students, faculty, staff, or community members attend this event? Are there interactive elements or other opportunities that the event provides in addition to the speech?
Does your institution’s calendar allow sufficient time between the start of the term and the event to organize and market it?
Are there partners who can support the speaker event and/or host events aligned with the speaker topic?
Looking for inspiration on different topics for speakers? Below is a list of speeches given on Constitution Day at institutions around the country:
Here Comes the Freedom Train: The Constitution and the Freedom Train Exhibit in the Early Cold War
The Constitution and Democracy in Polarized Times
A Supreme Court Unlike Any Other
Is there Really a Constitutional Right to Abortion?
Exploring the Boundaries of Constitutionality from Multiple Perspectives
Confronting the Rise of Hate Crimes and White Supremacy
Crime and Punishment in Black America
The First Amendment and Civic Action
Rights of the Accused: Fact or Fiction?
The Carceral State: Race, Citizenship and American Life
Targeted Killings, the Constitution, and You: U.S. Drone Policy and Citizens' Rights
Reproductive Justice: Celebrating and Defending Roe
Corporate Speech, Political Ads, and the Law
Crossing the Border: Where Does the Constitution Stand
Gay Marriage: Legal and Constitutional Issues
Struggles for Racial Justice
From Revolution to Constitution
Free Speech and Religious Liberty
Do we Need a Constitution?
Derek Chauvin's Conviction Following the Murder of George Floyd
Desegregating American Political Thought
SCOTUS' Renewed Separation of Powers
What Can George Washington Teach Us About the Constitution
Government Corruption and Private Power
How the Pursuit of Happiness Defines America
President Kennedy's Interpretation of the First Amendment
Rethinking Libel and Freedom of Press
Native Nations and Jefferson's 1804 Constitution
The Justices and the Constitution
The Constitution and Artificial Intelligence
The Health of the U.S. Constitution
A Celebration of the 19th Amendment
What About DACA?
Guns, Federalism, and the Constitution
Could a Ban on Muslim Immigration to the United States Happen?
Jury Service and 12 Angry Jurors
War without a Declaration? Unpacking Presidential Power and Congressional Authority
The Environment and the Constitution
Understanding Judicial Power: Your Vote Supports Equal Justice
Slavery and the U.S. Constitution
The Constitution and Public Service
Eroding Fourth Amendment Protections at Sports Stadiums
Indian Nations and the Constitution
The Potential for a New Constitutional Convention
Political Humor in Democratic Life
Effective Political Messaging
Beyond a speaker or panel discussion, many institutions host events each year related to Constitution Day. Here are several common events that could take place at many institutions:
Host your state Court of Appeals, other court proceedings, or other government meeting: State Courts of Appeal like those in Nebraska and Texas have traveling sessions that take place on Constitution Day at a different educational institution each year. Local governments may also be willing to host various meetings on campus to fulfill similar goals.
Voter registration and get-out-the-vote efforts. National Voter Registration Day is often celebrated in conjunction with Constitution Day.
Constitution reading: Many institutions and groups read the U.S. constitution as part of a standalone event or in conjunction with other Constitution Day events.
Often, excellent Constitution Day programs are creative and attract attention from different constituencies across campus. In providing this list of Constitution Day events, the aim is to encourage you to think about the kinds of partnerships, collaborations, and resources that would make for a meaningful Constitution Day program on your campus:
Your Pi Sigma Alpha chapter can be a natural partner in planning and implementing Constitution Day events. Pi Sigma Alpha’s civic engagement grant could be used to support such programming.
Here is a list of some activities and events that Pi Sigma Alpha chapters have led that are appropriate for a Constitution Day celebration. We thank Pi Sigma Alpha for including a question about Constitution Day celebrations on their chapter reports so that these suggestions could be collected:
Hosting a forum with local political leaders
Voter registration tables, discussions, and get-out-the-vote efforts
Essay, article, or infographic contest
Political poetry night
Civic engagement film festival
Presentations to K-12 students on the Constitution or political science topics
Service-learning events
Identifying and working to address local public policy problems
Educational materials about policy differences among local candidates
Contests or games about constitutional issues
Research on Constitution Day celebrations: